Crescendo
by mykhalasaar
Summary: Korra has some serious re-evaluating and thinking to do after finding herself addicted to one bender and indebted to another...a possible sequel to Addicted.
1. Prologue

**Legend of Korra ©**_**Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko**_

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_**Crescendo**_

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**Prologue**

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_Day Zero_

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He never showed his emotions through those icy blue eyes of his… always smirking or frowning but his intentions never showing. He always remained a mystery.

I was his opposite. Both water in nature, yes, but his was as cold and rigid as ice while mine was hot and boiling like the sun.

With the days I've spent with him, sleeping in his bed and waking to his nakedness in the morning… I learned that the night betrayed his mystery. The night showed me his feelings, his sincerities, his life. And I ached for it and reached for it. At night he liked To Talk. To Moan. To Love.

His touch was gentle and light, the tremble of his fingers played a beat against the sensitivities of my own skin. I could feel the wants of his body, I could feel his passion, and I returned it.

I inhaled, his lips lingering at my throat. Then he stopped, trailing a kiss to my lips, and he looks at me with merciless eyes. "Catch you later, Avatar."

_I never saw him again after that night._

I found solace with another opposite, _Mako. _And I laughed and loved with him, felt every emotion with him. I was content. But contentment wasn't what I wanted.

Life went on, and so did I. Or so I thought. As the world grew around me, I clung to its sides to grow with it.

But…

"_Long time no see, Avatar."_

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**A/N: **I'm BACK. With more Legend of Korra goodness. However, I want this to be a bit more interactive. There is a possibility of a Makorra _or _a Tahnorra… depending on how the story will play out. And _you _guys can _influence_, not dictate, what Korra would do. Just give me your input or answer this question:

_**If you were Korra, with the defining characteristics of both men, Tahno and Mako, who would you choose? Why would you choose Tahno/Mako (disregarding physical appearance)?**_

Of course I'll keep writing chapters whether or not I get answers…so, alright! Thanks for playing.


	2. Korra 1

**Legend of Korra ©_Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko_**

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**Crescendo**

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**A/N: **Hi, hello, and sorry. I was really swamped with work and school. Plus I am in the process of applying for a new job. When finals ended, I went on a mini vacation, then of course the job applications… school registrations (whoo-hoo for my third year of college), payments, sigh… Just a LOT of things to do, so I got held up. BUT, I am back now… and I'll totally try and be a lot faster with the updates. If any of you noticed that I updated for a story that isn't this, that was because that story hadn't been updated for "I don't even know how many months" and well, priorities.

Anyway, as usual, there will be a question at the end of this chapter! Enjoy!

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_Korra_

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It was impossible to stop. Our bodies reverted to its old habits, the insatiable lust so desperate and hot that the last thing on my mind was guilt and shame. His rhythm and mine matched, awkward at first until it synchronized. Deeper and deeper he pushed himself in me. His moans escaped as gentle whispers, while I struggled with my voice, whimpering at the passion and heat that we both felt.

As Tahno slowed, he caressed my neck with his tongue, his fingers playing with my hardened nipples. My arms wrapped around his shoulders as he pulled himself out, ejaculating on my stomach. I could feel myself wanting—_needing_—for more.

I pressed my thighs together, trying to ward off the feeling of dissatisfaction. But he saw and understood, "Sorry," he apologized breathlessly, wiping his cum off my stomach. Tahno cradled the back of my neck with his left hand and started kissing it again. His right hand traveled down my body, gently cupping at my naked skin until he reached my crotch. Delicately, his fingers flicked at my clit, sending small cry of pleasure from my throat. Then he started to rub it in circles, drawing a line from my entrance up.

"Better?" he asked softly, putting his mouth in my breast, sucking in steady motion. I nodded frantically as he inserted his long fingers in me, swirling at my insides until the sensitivities of my body escaped with an orgasm. I could feel the weakness in my knees surge up my body. I was trembling under him, and as usual, he tried to lengthen my pleasure. By the end of it, I was spent.

Tahno stood from the bed, stretching. And I studied his body. When he appeared in front of me earlier today, I immediately saw that his hair was longer, but he looked relatively the same. Now that I see him this way—naked, I notice the long scars that had embedded themselves on his back and chest, his muscles were hard and I wanted to touch him again. To trail kisses on his body and leave my own mark. Whatever the five years had done to him, he seemed leaner and bigger than what I remember.

"What happened to you?" I asked him, struggling to turn on my stomach as I leaned into my forearms.

He raised an eyebrow, stretching again before lying back down on the bed. "You like the improvement?"

I didn't reply and instead traced a scar on his stomach.

"The scars," he started, hesitating a bit as he moved my hand away, "I got from adapting." I gave him a look that told him I didn't understand. "When you have had something your whole life, then suddenly it's taken away from you, you get two choices. You either stay mad about it, or you adapt." He was talking about his bending, I knew. I had tried to return it to him when we met but he refused. To why that is, he hasn't given me a response yet.

"Enough about me," he said, though I wanted to point out that he had barely said anything. "What's new with you?"

I shrugged, "things stayed the same, business here and there." Then for some reason, before I could stop myself, "spent some time with other…people." Even I heard the shame in my voice.

"The firebender, you mean." Tahno said. I could hear him stifle a laugh. "As far as I'm concerned, we're not exclusive. So you can have fun with as many _people_ as you want."

Suddenly, I was annoyed. "Who said anything about being exclusive with anyone?" I said, sharper than I intended.

"Alright," he answered, "but I doubt the firebender sees things your way... I'm sure he's worrying about you now. Wondering where his little treasure went."

I shook my head and sighed, running my hands over his scars again. This time, he let me. And I didn't hold back. I touched him everywhere I can, moving enough so I was close enough to kiss him on his neck. I don't know why I did it, but I propositioned him again and Tahno—Spirits help me—obliged my needs.

If Mako was really worrying about me, I wasn't very sorry that he'd have to worry for a bit more.

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**A/N: **I think the re-writing did this story a lot of good. Haha!


	3. Mako 1

**Legend of Korra ©**_**Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko**_

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**Crescendo**

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**A/N: **I sincerely apologize for dropping the ball on this one. I totally told myself that I was going to be much better with this… and well, I guess I am not. Haha! Sorry, also, you know how you get little shipping highs? Well, it disappeared on me for a bit, and then it returned, because I thought: Damn. I really like Tahno.

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_Mako_

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"Korra," I repeated, reaching over the stack of papers to try and get her attention.

She jolted at my touch and looked at me with wide eyes, "hm?" Obviously, she was distracted, or at least even more so than usual since she seemed to be going through the written reports faster than usual.

"Are you alright?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at her. She liked to keep things inside too, an infuriating habit of hers. "You seem to be out of it."

Korra nodded as she frowned, she pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed heavily, "I guess it's just one of those days."

"Tell me about it," I suggested. "We never just talk anymore." And it was true. Though, there was really little to talk about. We both haven't been around each other lately—her, busy with her Avatar work, and myself with the police force. So our time together was usually spent in the city hall, quietly doing overtime with a few quips here and there.

"Yes, we do, I tell you everything." Korra said, pushing away files she was reading earlier. _Lie one._

I did the same with the reports I was filling out and raised an eyebrow in disagreement, "business talk doesn't count. I meant _really _talk. About life, about your day. I know something happened the other day when you didn't come home. If you're in trouble Korra, you need to let me know. " I stood up and put my hands on her shoulders, giving it a squeeze. I felt her tense up, but she rolled her shoulders and relaxed again.

"I was just dealing with some little group that keeps calling themselves a gang. Don't worry too much." She smiled at me. _Lie two_. I would have known about something like that, no matter how small.

"I know you're the Avatar and all, but being alone is not going to help you much." I said, wanting her to trust me.

"I'm alright." She put a hand on mine. "My day was uneventful. It's the same as always, though I did have to chase down a thief—without the use of bending, for fairness." She said, looking up at me. I had to laugh at that.

"Alright, in any case, I just wanted to let you know that I reserved us a table at that new restaurant." I collected the files she was working on and put them aside. "I thought we could go and have dinner, just us. No business, no problems, just _us_."

She gave me a small smile that read tired, but she nodded, "I would love that." _Lie three_.

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**A/N: **This is going to be interesting for me… I didn't think I could write for Mako without making him into a bitch. Haha, but you know what, I can do this. And I think I will find new appreciation for him by the end of things. Also, I made Korra seem like such a bad person…hm…


	4. Tahno 1

**Legend of Korra ©**_**Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko**_

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**Crescendo**

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**A/N: **It doesn't make sense for me to only have a few updates when the chapters are so short. When I'm stressed, I tend to write a lot more, because I just want to escape from it all. Haha!

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_Tahno_

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I didn't know what the Avatar was thinking when she came home with me that night. It sure as hell wasn't a pity fuck because—_whoo_—the way her body moved against mine _definitely_ wasn't some half-assed sex. And I didn't _need _a pity fuck, I was quite blessed in that department.

So now I wasn't sure if I had to feel guilty with having another woman in my bed. I told Korra we weren't exclusive, but I don't think I convinced her of that, or myself for that matter. Whatever happened that night was _a lot _more than just sex. It sort of annoyed me; the intimacy was a bit disconcerting. I wasn't used to that.

I needed a drink.

"Sweetheart," I called to the woman in my bed—I didn't even know her name—rousing her awake. "I'm going out for a drink. Your clothes are in the living room when you're ready." I said, putting on a coat as I fervently hoped she would be gone by the time I got back.

The woman smiled at me and I knew what that smile meant, but this was a one-time thing. It was too bad; she was a pretty little thing, experienced too. "Let me join you?" She asked, following me to the front door.

"That's not a good idea," I returned her smile, albeit mine was a bit sardonic. Her cheerful expression fell, and she nodded as I headed out. Then, because of the bastard that I am, I peeked back into the apartment and gestured to the shirt she was wearing. "Leave my shirt. They keep going missing."

With that I left and headed for the nearest bar I knew of. I remembered it as a small place, a bit rowdy on the side, but it was the perfect place to unwind. I wasn't too sure if it would still be there though. Things tend to change when you disappear for a number of years.

I turned the corner and smile, it was still there. Lucky me… I really needed that drink. There was too much going on in my head that I found myself regretting coming back, but there was no point in staying away. Eventually, I had to face what I left.

The bar wasn't as busy as I thought it would, it being late in the night and very much the time for drinking. A couple of people stared at me as I walked in and I already knew that someone was going to start a fight. As much as I wanted to start throwing my punching, I had to hold back. A fight was not what I was looking for. So I sit at the bar and order a drink, the strongest one they had.

As I downed one after the other, I felt someone sit next to me. I turned my head to take a look and the man smirked at me. "I prefer to be alone." I said, taking another drink, uncomfortable at how close the guy was getting.

"And here I thought my friends were shitting me," the man said, his smirk still plastered on his face.

I brought my drink down heavily on the counter and gave the man a smirk of my own, "what do you want piss face?"

The man laughed and glanced at his friends to come over, "who knew that the neutered former Wolfbat would have bite?" And there it was… I knew this was going to happen at some point. I wasn't the type to make friends back in the day, so, enemies made then would of course pounce of me the chance they get.

I tried to ignore him but it seemed to set the guy off even more, so I stood up from my seat and pushed him away from me. The guy flicked his arm out and sent an icicle towards my face. It was sloppy at best, he either had too much to drink or just sucked.

I dodged the icicle and kept myself at a distance. Other customers pressed themselves against the edges of the small bar. Some took the chance to leave. The man sent another icicle at me and I dodged that too.

"Why not take a swing at me?" the man taunted, sending whips of water that I avoided. But I couldn't keep moving around, I'd run out of room soon, so I angled myself and took a whip to the chest. It was strong enough to sting, but not enough to knock me off my feet. It did the trick though; I closed the gap between us and swung my leg around, effectively hitting him square in the abdomen. He stumbled but recovered quickly.

"What is the meaning of this?!" A familiar voice barked, my eyes flickered to the left and _damn_—who else but the Avatar herself.


	5. Korra 2

**Legend of Korra ©**_**Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko**_

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**Crescendo**

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_Korra_

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The dinner was a quiet one. I know that this wasn't what Mako had in mind when he asked me to dinner, but this really was all that I could give. I laughed at some things he said and he laughed at mine. There wasn't much to it than that. Overall, the dinner was stuck in an awkward place. Just a bit over the line of friendship, it probably looked like a first date to those who watched us.

I had thought that perhaps this would take me out of my fence. There was something to Mako that made me very grateful to him. He was the first to find me sniveling in my weaknesses. Mako was there for that and I loved him for it. But there was too much of him that just didn't seem to _know _what he wanted.

I didn't know if he chose me _just because_, or he truly did love me and wanted to spend his days with me. He told me several times, whenever I would waver in the relationship, that he loved me. But even I can see him hesitate.

"Maybe," I started, feeling scared all of a sudden, "maybe this wasn't meant to be."

He paused from eating and looked at me, "I don't like the sound of that."

I licked my lips and avoided his gaze, "I don't know what to call what we have." I told him plainly.

"An intimate relationship. Lovers. Boyfriend and girlfriend." He said with a bite in his tone. I felt like I betrayed him.

"No, Mako." I replied, shaking my head slowly. "We don't talk. And frankly, if I can't get myself to tell you everything then something is _wrong_."

Mako reached for my hands and I let him, "relationships are hard. We can work things out." His voice was close to a whisper. It sounded desperate now. It made me guilty enough to almost take back everything I said. _Almost_.

"You can't even look at Asami directly." I pointed out. "And everything we've done to this point felt forced. Like it's an obligation. A relationship shouldn't be an obligation." I was speaking quickly, panicked a bit.

After a few moments of silence he spoke up again, "who is it?"

I was taken aback. It pained me to think that he had been suspicious all along, but as much as I wanted to tell him the truth, I didn't think it was the best time to reveal it. Besides, Tahno seem to have made it clear that it wasn't an exclusive relationship.

"It's not important." I lied. Bringing up Tahno now would bring up other things; other questions that I didn't really want to—didn't really know _how _to answer at the moment. "I thought about this a lot Mako. About me and you… and I really think that we went into this too fast. Call it heat of the moment—or something, but we're trying to make a broken thing work."

Mako sighed, frowning at my logic. He didn't even reply, so I kept talking. "You and Asami had so much more going on that you and I ever did. I—"

He stood up from his seat, nodded and kissed my forehead as he usually does. "The meal has been paid for, so, don't worry about the bill or anything." He said mirthlessly and turned to leave.

"Mako…" I had to try and smooth things over.

"No." He simply said and kept walking. I buried my face in my hands and left the restaurant after a few minutes. I was aware that people were staring, but that didn't matter right now.

I needed a drink.

Or something. There was a little bar around the corner and maybe it won't be too busy. I thanked and apologized to the waitress before hurriedly leaving the place. This always happened, for a time Mako and I would hate each other, but at some point, we'd talk things over and reconsider. It was a little unnerving to know that this may not be one of those times.

I turned the corner and saw a crowd in front of the bar, I contemplated just going somewhere else and not deal with this, but even a crappy day like this wouldn't be enough to turn me away from this. I pushed myself towards the bar, hearing bits and pieces of information. It was a bar fight, what else would it be? It was best to stop them before anything could escalate.

Finally, I get into a clearing and before anything else, "what is the meaning of this?!"

As to why I _just_ realized that Tahno was there escaped me, but I hid my surprise in a frown.

The other man started to send another icicle going, Tahno, starting a charge himself before I burst a waterline and freeze them in place. The man struggled against the freezing wave and groaned as he slammed against the wall. I turned to Tahno expecting him buried in thick ice, but he wasn't there. I don't know how he did it, but he was able to duck around my wave and avoid it all together. Impressive.

I looked back at the other man, and Tahno was already there, ready to punch the man's face. "Tahno!" I warned, "Stop."

Tahno huffed a frustration and let his arms drop to his sides. "Anything for you Avatar," he said, letting me unfreeze the man from the ice. But then Tahno's hand shot up and knocked the man unconscious.

"Tahno!" I repeated in frustration as I hurried myself over to the man, I turned to the bystanders and asked them to call for a ride to the hospital.

"Go." I said to Tahno, a stronger bite in my tone than I intended. He nodded and drank what I could assume was the rest of his drink.

"You know where I'm staying," he said and stumbled out of the bar.


	6. Tahno 2

**Legend of Korra ©_Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko_**

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**Crescendo**

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_Tahno_

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I was _drunk_. A little bit angry and a little bit relieved, but I felt good—and a good plus, that woman wasn't here anymore. The damn guy was a lot of fun to fight, but his waterbending...he didn't deserve to have it, I thought. He was sloppy and slow, no power behind his attacks, and there was no skill. When I—

I decided that my reminiscing wasn't going to do me any good so I take a shower, ready to go to bed and relax. My thoughts went to the Avatar as I stood under the strong stream, if she wasn't there to stop me, who knows what I could have done to the guy? She seemed genuinely angry and I liked it like that.

There was something appealing when she was angry at me, but I saw something else. I knew she didn't come across the bar on accident. Whatever it was, I didn't really care, but I was curious. Ah, I was _really _curious. Or actually, I got to admit, I just wanted her to come visit me.

Despite what my reputation held, I wasn't really all about sex. I loved sex, that's for sure, but that doesn't mean that it's all I think about. With Korra—the Avatar, she was easy to talk to. Her buttons were very easy to push and prod. She was—is—fun.

I felt a nervousness build in the pit of my stomach. I don't know why I started thinking that way, as I have said; the intimacy I was feeling now was disconcerting. A bit of a push, and I think I'll just risk going over the edge.

* * *

It must have been two hours since I was able to fall asleep when I heard a loud rapping on my door. It took me a moment to answer it and the knocking came again, louder this time.

"Wait." I said, a bit groggy from my short sleep. Before I could fully open the door Korra pushed her way in. She glared at me and pushed my shoulder. I stumbled a bit, returning her glare with a tired smirk. "Didn't know you did house calls."

That did the trick, she shoved me again, harder this time and I slammed against a wall. "_What the hell was that?_" She demanded.

"Relax." I said, taking a chance to put my hands on her shoulders, which she shrugged off. "It was just a small fight."

She shook her head, "you were going to rip that guy's head off. You were _angry_."

I shrugged, smiling to hide my thoughts. "I was blowing off steam."

"I'm worried about you." She suddenly blurted out. "You keep a lot of secrets and you come back with scars and _angry _and –" she stopped and bit her lip.

"I should go," she said, when I didn't reply. Her expression relaxed as she sighed again. "I can't deal with this right now. We'll talk about this later."

_And push_.

As she turned to leave, hand fidgeted for a bit as I try to figure out what to do. But I reached out and grabbed her arm. I could be mistaking it, but she didn't resist as I spun her around to face me. And that was awkward. We stood there facing each other; I was breathing heavily and felt her take a deep, shuddering breath.

_Another push_.

I leaned in and kissed her hard on the lips, she returned it, pushing her tongue into my mouth. I got her lip and sucked on it then trailed my kisses down her neck. She moaned under me and my hands quickly undressed her. I run my hands down her back and she started grinding her hips against mine.

"I thought this wasn't going to happen again?" I managed to say as she nipped at my neck and shoulders.

"I thought so too," she replied, dropping to her knees.

I pulled her back up, "No, wait…not here."

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**A/N: **Well then.


End file.
